Phish

The band responsible for the quickest sell-out in Merriweather Post Pavilion's history is back again this weekend — this time for two days instead of one. Seminal jam band Phish, after reuniting last year, sold out the 17,500-capacity amphitheater in mere minutes. This time around, advance tickets were still available midweek, but both shows were expected to sell out the day of — if not before, according to spokeswoman Audrey Schaefer. Last year's show was one of the less notable stops on Phish's reunion tour.

Rolling into Columbia's Merriweather Post Pavilion for a two-night run this past weekend, jam-rockers Phish offered few surprises on Saturday night. But the band provided two sets of blistering and succinct music, a blend of new and old, along with - for those on the lawn during the first set - buckets of rain. During the enthusiastic albeit brief first set, Phish kicked its set off with a robust rendition of the summer anthem "Kill Devil Falls," a new favorite from the band's most recent studio album, 2009's "Joy . " The set continued with cohesive versions of "Destiny Unbound," "Taste," "Halfway to the Moon" and 'Twenty Years Later" before the Vermont virtuosos treated the sold-out audience to a powerhouse version of "Maze," the high-energy improvisational vehicle.

Rolling into Columbia's Merriweather Post Pavilion for a two-night run this past weekend, jam-rockers Phish offered few surprises on Saturday night. But the band provided two sets of blistering and succinct music, a blend of new and old, along with - for those on the lawn during the first set - buckets of rain. During the enthusiastic albeit brief first set, Phish kicked its set off with a robust rendition of the summer anthem "Kill Devil Falls," a new favorite from the band's most recent studio album, 2009's "Joy . " The set continued with cohesive versions of "Destiny Unbound," "Taste," "Halfway to the Moon" and 'Twenty Years Later" before the Vermont virtuosos treated the sold-out audience to a powerhouse version of "Maze," the high-energy improvisational vehicle.

If you could care less about this year's Grammys (wouldn't blame you there) or the Allen Stone show at the 8x10 isn't your thing, there's the Umphrey's McGee show at Rams Head Live on Sunday night. I've made the mistake of calling Umphrey's a "jam band" - a label for bands I say I'm allergic to because I never got into Phish. But I have persistent friends (the same friends that drop whatever they're doing whenever Umphrey's McGee is in the area) that told me they weren't Phish-lite.

By J.D. Considine and J.D. Considine,SUN POP MUSIC CRITIC | December 25, 1997

To make another live album, or not to make another live album -- for Phish, that is the question.There's no doubt that the quartet is incredible in concert, balancing tight, song-based playing with breathtaking, spontaneous improvisations. Even a decade ago, when Phish was just starting out, it owed its audience to the magic the four could conjure onstage.That stage show is even better now. "This last U.S. tour was really a great tour for us," says guitarist Trey Anastasio. "I think in 1996, we weren't playing as well as we are now."

HOISTPhish (Elektra 61628)As anyone familiar with their live show knows, the guys in Phish definitely know how to play. Writing, though, was another matter. Most of what passed for songs on the band's first three albums were long on jam potential but notably short on tunes. That's not the case with "Hoist." As strong as the playing is, the most memorable moments on this album are strictly melodic, from the funk/rock punch of "Down with Disease" to the mournful country strains of "If I Could."

Musical worlds collided Thursday night when rocker Trey Anastasio took the stage with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and conductor Marin Alsop. There were no casualties. Anastasio, founding member of Phish and a songwriter with a refreshing avoidance of conventional chord progressions, has been collaborating with traditional classical ensembles for several years now. His most ambitious effort in this field is a half-hour piece called Time Turns Elastic that he co-wrote with Don Hart, composer-in-residence of Orchestra Nashville.

A Howard County grand jury indicted 11 people from seven states on felony drug charges yesterday. They are accused of possessing a variety of drugs at this year's Phish concert at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Yesterday's indictments, plus two from a grand jury session Oct. 5, are for the most serious charges brought against 55 people arrested during the Sept. 17 concert, prosecutors said. Investigators said more indictments might be pending. "We get a few out of some concerts," said Deputy State's Attorney I. Matthew Campbell.

A Howard County grand jury has indicted two more people arrested at September's Phish concert at Merriweather Post Pavilion, bringing the total to 15. As in the other 13 indictments stemming from the Sept. 17 event, the two concertgoers are from out of town - one from New Mexico, the other from Ohio - and were arrested on drug charges. Fifty-five people were arrested at this year's concert, police said.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- The concert has just ended, and hundreds of dazed, dirty kids fresh from their nightly epiphany stream out of the arena at Penn State University and into the parking lot. They pass joints, share hummus, spin on the asphalt to the beat of a bongo.Mike, 19, with a mangy nest of brown hair, a new beard and shoes held together with electrical tape, surveys the scene with satisfaction. It's like this after every Phish concert. Same kids, same drugs, same communal scrounging.

The McRib, which debuted in 1981, returned on Tuesday. How much do you know about the McRib? 1) The McRib has done more farewell tours than a) Phish b) the Doobie Brothers c) Marlene Dietrich d) all of the above e) cannot be determined 2) The McRib, in terms of the success of its comeback, is like a) Brett Favre b) Michael Jordan c) Shahid Afridi 3) The McRib looks like it has bones, but it doesn't. That is a) weird b) amazing c) disturbing d) Hello!! Nobel Committee!

Howard County Police arrested 24 individuals at two Phish concerts held at Merriweather Post Pavilion on June 11 and 12. All but three of the arrests were made on accounts of drug possession or distribution and three vehicles were seized in accordance with these apprehensions: a 2000 Chevrolet truck, a 2000 Saab and a Honda motorcycle. In addition to the vehicles, police also seized $2,000 in cash as evidence against the charges of drug distribution or possession with the intent to distribute.

Howard County Police made a total of 21 drug- and alcohol-related arrests at two Phish concerts this past weekend at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, seizing three vehicles containing drugs and more than $10,000 in cash. The concert has been a site for increased drug activity in the past. County police collaborated with Merriweather, providing extra forces — including officers from special operations and vice and narcotics — to supplement the venue's security.

The band responsible for the quickest sell-out in Merriweather Post Pavilion's history is back again this weekend — this time for two days instead of one. Seminal jam band Phish, after reuniting last year, sold out the 17,500-capacity amphitheater in mere minutes. This time around, advance tickets were still available midweek, but both shows were expected to sell out the day of — if not before, according to spokeswoman Audrey Schaefer. Last year's show was one of the less notable stops on Phish's reunion tour.

As the officer in charge of a Howard County police detail at Merriweather Post Pavilion concerts, Capt. John McKissick says that "different bands draw different kinds of crowds." In the case of Phish, often compared to the Grateful Dead, some in the crowd of 20,000 were doing drugs Saturday night, when police made 31 drug-related arrests - the most of any concert in recent memory, McKissick said Tuesday. Four out-of-state men were arrested and charged with drug possession, intent to distribute and possession of paraphernalia, police said.

Musical worlds collided Thursday night when rocker Trey Anastasio took the stage with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and conductor Marin Alsop. There were no casualties. Anastasio, founding member of Phish and a songwriter with a refreshing avoidance of conventional chord progressions, has been collaborating with traditional classical ensembles for several years now. His most ambitious effort in this field is a half-hour piece called Time Turns Elastic that he co-wrote with Don Hart, composer-in-residence of Orchestra Nashville.

The sun rose over the Everglades in brilliant pink and purple hues as thousands of bodies swayed near exhaustion to the trippy tunes of the world's biggest jam band. Phish, the Vermont-grown quartet adored by transient followers while mostly ignored by the mainstream music machine, had pulled off an amazing feat, drawing nearly 80,000 fans from across the country to the quiet Big Cypress Seminole Reservation near Miami for New Year's Eve 1999. That first painted Florida dawn of 2000 marked the end of a marathon set that had begun before midnight and gone nonstop for almost eight hours.

"Bittersweet Motel" is a documentary about the cult jam-band Phish, which has grown into one of the most popular touring acts in the country thanks to a grass-roots following that started when they were still in college. Where they went to college is never revealed in Todd Phillips' scant film, although we know it was somewhere in Vermont. Similarly, the lives and personalities of the individuals in the four-member band are never revealed; "Bittersweet Motel" turns out to be mostly about the group's front-man, Trey Anastasio, and his philosophy of music, art and virtuosity.

A night at the symphony is the most sought-after concert ticket in town this week. But while conductor Marin Alsop and her Baltimore orchestra will be on stage, they're not exactly the main draw. That would be Trey Anastasio, the guitarist and vocalist best known as the frontman of Phish, which enjoys a devoted fan base not seen since the Grateful Dead. On Thursday, Anastasio will perform the East Coast premiere of Time Turns Elastic, a 30-minute piece that blends electric guitar and vocal solos into a rich orchestral fabric.

Beware of e-mail messages and blog posts that direct consumers to register software with the Better Business Bureau. The BBB warns that the messages are phishing schemes designed to fool people into sharing private information. The BBB says the public should know that such messages and posts are not coming from the BBB system, and that the attempts have not compromised BBB computer systems or data. Reports to the BBB began arriving last month about bogus messages requiring businesses and people to "register new software and update contact information" with the BBB. The messages also provided a link for the process.